Pensacola Lighthouse and Museum shines after $2.5 million restoration

Jon Hill, executive director of the Pensacola Lighthouse and Museum, explains what was done during the recent restoration.
Anne Delaney, adelaney@pnj.com

Shown on Friday, May 25, 2018, the Pensacola Lighthouse and Museum on NAS Pensacola underwent approximately $2.5 million in restoration between December 2013 and January 2018. A donation of $104,000 by IMPACT 100 Pensacola Bay Area helped jump start the process that included repairing cracks in structures and foundations, correcting a paint issue from a previous restore procedure in the 1990's, and much more.(Photo: Jody Link/online@pnj.com)

Carlos Castillo has been visiting his brother in Pensacola for about six months, and in that time, he has visited the Pensacola Lighthouse and Museum three times.

Twice, he climbed the 177 steps for a view from the top of the 151-foot structure at Pensacola Naval Air Station.

Castillo, 46, of Orlando, liked the lighthouse so much that he brought his sister with him on Friday.

"It was so good I wanted her to check it out," Castillo said of his sister, Rosie Rivera, who is visiting for the weekend. "I've never been to a place like this and I wanted to implant those images in my head."

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Shown on Friday, May 25, 2018, the Pensacola Lighthouse and Museum on NAS Pensacola underwent approximately $2.5 million in restoration between December 2013 and January 2018. A donation of $104,000 by IMPACT 100 Pensacola Bay Area helped jump start the process that included repairing cracks in structures and foundations, correcting a paint issue from a previous restore procedure in the 1990's, and much more. Jody Link/online@pnj.com

Shown on Friday, May 25, 2018, the Pensacola Lighthouse and Museum on NAS Pensacola underwent approximately $2.5 million in restoration between December 2013 and January 2018. A donation of $104,000 by IMPACT 100 Pensacola Bay Area helped jump start the process that included repairing cracks in structures and foundations, correcting a paint issue from a previous restore procedure in the 1990's, and much more. Jody Link/online@pnj.com

Of the 177 total stairs in the lighthouse, 110 of them needed to be fixed during the approximately $2.5 million restoration process that occurred between December 2013 and January 2018. Nine of the nine-inch risers that hold each stair also needed to be restored. A donation of $104,000 by IMPACT 100 Pensacola Bay Area helped jump start the process that included repairing cracks in structures and foundations, correcting a paint issue from a previous restore procedure in the 1990's, and much more. Jody Link/online@pnj.com

Shown on Friday, May 25, 2018, a new room in the basement of the lighthouse recently opened to visitors. Between December 2013 and January 2018, the lighthouse and on-site buildings underwent approximately $2.5 million in restoration that included repairing cracks in structures and foundations, correcting a paint issue from a previous restore procedure in the 1990's, and much more. A donation of $104,000 by IMPACT 100 Pensacola Bay Area helped jump start the process. Jody Link/online@pnj.com

John Hill, executive director of the Pensacola Lighthouse and Museum on NAS Pensacola, talks on Friday, May 25, 2018, about the restoration that was done to the lighthouse and the on-site buildings between December 2013 and January 2018. Jody Link/online@pnj.com

Shown on Friday, May 25, 2018, the Pensacola Lighthouse and Museum on NAS Pensacola underwent approximately $2.5 million in restoration between December 2013 and January 2018. A donation of $104,000 by IMPACT 100 Pensacola Bay Area helped jump start the process that included repairing cracks in structures and foundations, correcting a paint issue from a previous restore procedure in the 1990's, and much more. Jody Link/online@pnj.com

Shown on Friday, May 25, 2018, the Pensacola Lighthouse and Museum on NAS Pensacola underwent approximately $2.5 million in restoration between December 2013 and January 2018. A donation of $104,000 by IMPACT 100 Pensacola Bay Area helped jump start the process that included repairing cracks in structures and foundations, correcting a paint issue from a previous restore procedure in the 1990's, and much more. Jody Link/online@pnj.com

John Hill, executive director of the Pensacola Lighthouse and Museum on NAS Pensacola, demonstrates one of the interactive exhibits on Friday, May 25, 2018. Between December 2013 and January 2018, the lighthouse and on-site buildings underwent approximately $2.5 million in restoration that included repairing cracks in structures and foundations, correcting a paint issue from a previous restore procedure in the 1990's, and much more. A donation of $104,000 by IMPACT 100 Pensacola Bay Area helped jump start the process. Jody Link/online@pnj.com

Clay Reeves, visiting from Omaha, Neb., left, talks with John Hill, executive director of the Pensacola Lighthouse and Museum on NAS Pensacola, in one of the museum rooms on Friday, May 25, 2018. Jody Link/online@pnj.com

Of the 177 total stairs in the lighthouse, 110 of them needed to be fixed during the approximately $2.5 million restoration process that occurred between December 2013 and January 2018. Nine of the nine-inch risers that hold each stair also needed to be restored. The organization now offers stair sponsorships that include a brass stair plaque affixed to the stair number of your choice, if available. Jody Link/online@pnj.com

Of the 177 total stairs in the lighthouse, 110 of them needed to be fixed during the approximately $2.5 million restoration process that occurred between December 2013 and January 2018. Nine of the nine-inch risers that hold each stair also needed to be restored. A donation of $104,000 by IMPACT 100 Pensacola Bay Area helped jump start the process that included repairing cracks in structures and foundations, correcting a paint issue from a previous restore procedure in the 1990's, and much more. Jody Link/online@pnj.com

Visitors look out from the top of the Pensacola Lighthouse and Museum on NAS Pensacola on Friday, May 25, 2018. Between December 2013 and January 2018, the lighthouse and on-site buildings underwent approximately $2.5 million in restoration that included repairing cracks in structures and foundations, correcting a paint issue from a previous restore procedure in the 1990's, and much more. A donation of $104,000 by IMPACT 100 Pensacola Bay Area helped jump start the process. Jody Link/online@pnj.com

Shown on Friday, May 25, 2018, the Pensacola Lighthouse and Museum on NAS Pensacola underwent approximately $2.5 million in restoration between December 2013 and January 2018. A donation of $104,000 by IMPACT 100 Pensacola Bay Area helped jump start the process that included repairing cracks in structures and foundations, correcting a paint issue from a previous restore procedure in the 1990's, and much more. Jody Link/online@pnj.com

Shown on Friday, May 25, 2018, the Pensacola Lighthouse and Museum on NAS Pensacola underwent approximately $2.5 million in restoration between December 2013 and January 2018. A donation of $104,000 by IMPACT 100 Pensacola Bay Area helped jump start the process that included repairing cracks in structures and foundations, correcting a paint issue from a previous restore procedure in the 1990's, and much more. Jody Link/online@pnj.com

Shown on Friday, May 25, 2018, the Pensacola Lighthouse and Museum on NAS Pensacola underwent approximately $2.5 million in restoration between December 2013 and January 2018. A donation of $104,000 by IMPACT 100 Pensacola Bay Area helped jump start the process that included repairing cracks in structures and foundations, correcting a paint issue from a previous restore procedure in the 1990's, and much more. Jody Link/online@pnj.com

Shown on Friday, May 25, 2018, the Pensacola Lighthouse and Museum on NAS Pensacola underwent approximately $2.5 million in restoration between December 2013 and January 2018. A donation of $104,000 by IMPACT 100 Pensacola Bay Area helped jump start the process that included repairing cracks in structures and foundations, correcting a paint issue from a previous restore procedure in the 1990's, and much more. Jody Link/online@pnj.com

Shown on Friday, May 25, 2018, the Pensacola Lighthouse and Museum on NAS Pensacola underwent approximately $2.5 million in restoration between December 2013 and January 2018. A donation of $104,000 by IMPACT 100 Pensacola Bay Area helped jump start the process that included repairing cracks in structures and foundations, correcting a paint issue from a previous restore procedure in the 1990's, and much more. Jody Link/online@pnj.com

Shown on Friday, May 25, 2018, the Pensacola Lighthouse and Museum on NAS Pensacola underwent approximately $2.5 million in restoration between December 2013 and January 2018. A donation of $104,000 by IMPACT 100 Pensacola Bay Area helped jump start the process that included repairing cracks in structures and foundations, correcting a paint issue from a previous restore procedure in the 1990's, and much more. Jody Link/online@pnj.com

Shown on Friday, May 25, 2018, the Pensacola Lighthouse and Museum on NAS Pensacola underwent approximately $2.5 million in restoration between December 2013 and January 2018. A donation of $104,000 by IMPACT 100 Pensacola Bay Area helped jump start the process that included repairing cracks in structures and foundations, correcting a paint issue from a previous restore procedure in the 1990's, and much more. Jody Link/online@pnj.com

Shown on Friday, May 25, 2018, the Pensacola Lighthouse and Museum on NAS Pensacola underwent approximately $2.5 million in restoration between December 2013 and January 2018. A donation of $104,000 by IMPACT 100 Pensacola Bay Area helped jump start the process that included repairing cracks in structures and foundations, correcting a paint issue from a previous restore procedure in the 1990's, and much more. Jody Link/online@pnj.com

Rivera, who lives in Queens, was sold on the experience. With beads of sweat on her forehead as she and Castillo browsed through the gift stop post-climb, Rivera, 51, raved about her first trip to a lighthouse.

"The view," she said. "Just the experience alone. It was amazing."

Jon Hill would welcome Castillo's and Rivera's praise. As executive director of the lighthouse and museum, he oversaw a more than four-year, $2.5 million restoration project that wrapped up in January.

More improvements are on the way in the coming year, including enhancing the interpretative and educational experience in the museum and completing work on the lighthouse lens, the original lighting apparatus known as the Fresnel lens that was built in France in the 1800s. The lens, which is 9 feet high and 6 feet wide, is one of only 10 first-order lens that remain in U.S. lighthouses, Hill said.

When Hill started work at the lighthouse as a volunteer nearly a decade ago, he had to enlist help from friends and family on cleanup efforts. Now, he's presiding over a restored and award-winning attraction.

Of the 177 total stairs in the lighthouse, 110 of them needed to be fixed during the approximately $2.5 million restoration process that occurred between December 2013 and January 2018. Nine of the nine-inch risers that hold each stair also needed to be restored. A donation of $104,000 by IMPACT 100 Pensacola Bay Area helped jump start the process that included repairing cracks in structures and foundations, correcting a paint issue from a previous restore procedure in the 1990's, and much more.(Photo: Jody Link/online@pnj.com)

The lighthouse and light station renovations were recently recognized by the Florida Trust for Historic Preservation for outstanding achievement in the restoration and rehabilitation category. The Florida Trust for Historic Preservation is a nonprofit organization in Tallahassee dedicated to preserving heritage and history.

Temple Beth El in Pensacola received an honorable mention in the category. The Brew Angels Pub in the old Milton Post Office received an honorable mention in the adaptive use category.

Although the lighthouse opened Jan. 1, 1859, it is still operational today, serving as an active aid for navigation outside the Pensacola Pass between the Gulf of Mexico and Pensacola Bay.

"It's amazing to be at this end of it now," Hill said. "The biggest award comes from knowing that we're preserving for the community. It is nice to be recognized by your peers for restoration and the quality of the restoration."

Photo taken during Civil War in 1861. Description wording below: Lighthouse is 165 feet high. One of the best lights in the country. The top of this lighthouse commands a view of land and sea as far as the eye can reach. Courtesy of UWF Historic Trust

Hill said when the restoration work began, there were cracks in the lighthouse tower exterior big enough for him to insert his fist. Those cracks were cleaned out and repaired, and the result resembled a Frankenstein scar, Hill said, until the exterior could be re-coated.

The four-phase restoration also included work on the lighthouse infrastructure, stabilizing the tower, removing paint, replacing and repairing the tower stairs, and fixing up the carriage house that dates to 1892.

The carriage house is one of three outbuildings on the five-acre grounds where the lighthouse is located. The grounds also house the lighthouse tower that was under construction from 1856 to 1859, the Keeper's Quarters from 1869 and a pump house and oil storage shed. The lighthouse and museum are part of a 42-acre property that also includes a beach, woods and parking.

After chipping away at improvements and work over the last decade as the lighthouse and museum has found money, Hill said the facility is now in a good place.

"It's been a balance of improvements and maintaining," Hill said. "It's coming along and we're getting there."